Aligot Recipe (Mashed Potatoes With Cheese)
Recipe from Tasting Table Test Kitchen
Meet the new Instagram sensation: aligot. The word might be tough to pronounce, but the ingredients are easy to understand. It's the ultimate stick-to-your-ribs comfort food, blending whipped mashed potatoes with melted cheese. Traditionally made with Cantal or Tomme, this dish originated from the Midi-Pyrénées in the South of France.
Fair warning: Once you try aligot, it might be hard to go back to traditional mashed potatoes.
To learn more, read "What to Eat Now: Potatoes" in our National edition.
This recipe was originally published on 2/13/14 and was updated with additional text and photography by Delia Mooney on 9/22/16.
This classic French recipe strikes the perfect balance between mashed potatoes and melted cheese
Pommes Aligot
Pommes aligot, mashed potatoes enriched with some cream and plenty of melted Tomme (cheese), may just be one of the finest ways to eat potatoes.
Ingredients
- 4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (about 2 pounds), peeled and quartered
- Kosher salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup heavy cream, warmed
- 1½ pounds Tomme d'Auvergne, rind removed and cut into ½-inch cubes (¾ pound Gruyère and ¾ pound fresh mozzarella can be substituted for Tomme d'Auvergne)
- Freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Put the potatoes in a medium pot and add enough cold water to cover by 2 inches. Add enough salt so that the water tastes salty, like the ocean, and bring a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes can be easily pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Drain.
- Immediately pass the potatoes through a food mill or ricer and return them to the pot. Set the pot over low heat and stir in the garlic, butter, cream and about half of the cheese. Once the cheese has melted, stir in the remaining cheese. Continue stirring until the potatoes can be stretched with a spoon like melted mozzarella. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.